Elizabeth at Work
by lilkawa
Summary: Elizabeth and Darcy meet at work
1. Chapter 1

_Pride and Prejudice_ doesn't belong to me.

Thanks Miriam1 for all your help.

Enjoy.

**Elizabeth at Work**

Darcy threw the files on his desk and looked at Bingley who was laughing at him. "This isn't funny."

"I beg to differ," Bingley replied. "It's very funny."

"Richard shouldn't treat me like an idiot. I've worked with people before," Darcy complained.

"In almost every D&F office you've worked at, you've fired or reassigned, as you like to call it, half the employees and the other quit within a month of your arrival."

"It's not my fault they can't work with me," Darcy said grudgingly. "Most of that lot was lazy and you must admit the work has become better. We're doing much better."

Still, he couldn't understand why his cousin Richard had felt the need to leave files about every person under employ, from the tea girl to the vice president. It was ridiculous, Darcy had no intention of firing anyone, unless they deserved it, and he couldn't control those who felt that they couldn't work with him.

He picked up the file on top and read aloud from it to Bingley.

"Elizabeth Bennet, PA, she's hardworking, fun and very likeable. She's one of the most organized and brilliant people I have ever worked with and responds to gentle handling." He threw down the file and asked in disgust, "Gentle handling? Does she have some sort of nervous condition? Is she a horse?"

"I'm sure that's not what he meant," Bingley said.

"That's what he meant, she's the only one whose file has any personal comments in it," Darcy told him, "the rest have only information about the person's work – nothing personal. At all."

000

Elizabeth had been about to knock and enter her new boss's office when she heard her name being mentioned. Dear Richard, he was such a nice man but why heard he written those things about her? He made her seem so … she had no words.

She raised her hand again to knock but the next words froze her in place.

"This Elizabeth Bennet is probably one of those weak women who need someone to do everything for them."

"Darcy, that's too much and it's very unfair to judge a person before you even meet them."

"That's what he wanted me to do," Darcy said, "otherwise, why leave me the files?"

"Still, you shouldn't jump to conclusions."

Darcy was on a roll. "Probably mousy, has a lazy eye, and wouldn't say boo to a sheep, I hate people like that."

000

Elizabeth made her way to the lift. She was already late for the party anyway; she'd stayed late to meet the new boss man, Mr. Darcy himself, who had come down to take over the company. She'd never met him, or even seen a picture of him in the press – apparently he was camera shy, although Lilly, the tea girl who'd seen him earlier in the day had gone on a bit about how tall, dark and absolutely gorgeous he was. But Elizabeth had heard of his brilliance, and that he was very hardworking and very good at what at he did, although his methods were a bit unconventional.

What she hadn't heard was that he was rude and very arrogant. How dare he call her mousy? Her dark brown hair was lovely, as for the lazy eye – her eyes were her best features.

000

She left the loo. It was a themed party and she was going, against her better wishes, as a fairy princess complete with wings.

Finally the lift opened and she got in. A man was already standing inside and she gave him a slight smile and stood quite apart from him. She couldn't wait to get to Jane and tell her all that she'd overheard.

Elizabeth gazed absently at the red digital numbers counting down the floors and glanced sideways at the man in the lift with her. He wasn't  
bad looking, after all. His hair was perfectly groomed although you could tell that he had run his hands through it a lot; and he had deep dark eyes, that a girl could drown in – stop it Lizzie – as for his smile, she wondered idly what he was smiling about, it was just great.

Oh, no, he had just caught her staring at him. Elizabeth looked down embarrassed. She looked up again at the large digital numbers which seemed to be taking a very long to change.

Darcy couldn't help himself. He stared at the dark-haired beauty in the lift with him. Apart from that time he'd seen her staring at him, she seemed more fascinated by the interior of the lift – and it wasn't much – than she was in him. He wanted to talk to her but for the life of him couldn't find the right words. She was obviously dressed for a party – that silver white dress, glitter and wings couldn't mean anything else, but he didn't where to start from.

Her sigh brought him back to earth. She was glaring at the large red numbers.

'I should have walked,' Elizabeth though to herself. 'Who are you kidding? Walked forty flights of stairs in these shoes,' she laughed silently to herself.

She looked at the glowing number again and it finally changed from nineteen to eighteen and remained there. At this rate she wouldn't make it for the party. She glared at it – as if her gaze could do a thing – but instead of moving the lift gasped and jolted and stopped.

"I think it's stuck," Darcy offered slowly earning himself a glare from Elizabeth. What did he think, that she couldn't tell that the lift had stopped? Jane and Charlotte would probably think that she had made this all up to avoid going out with them.

She turned her gaze back to the numbers. This was one of the newest and best office buildings in town - the lift should be working. All the time.

000

"So you're going to a party?" he asked.

"I guess not," Elizabeth replied. "We're stuck in the lift, remember?"

He nodded. Obviously he knew that, but he wanted to talk to her and that had seemed like a good enough topic to begin with.

"Let me guess, fairy princess?"

"What gave me away?"

"The wings and glitter were quite hard to miss," he replied.

"I guess you think it's ridiculous, don't you?"

"No, no, I just wish I could actually find time to do such stuff," he told her. "But my work is so -."

"Please, no work talk," she interrupted him. "It's Friday night and I will not talk about work, although I do love my job."

It occurred to them then that they both probably worked in this building. But it was huge with over ten large firms and Darcy had entered at the lift from his office floor while Elizabeth had entered five floors below – she preferred the loos on that floor.

"I just moved here," he offered.

"Birmingham is great, I like it," Elizabeth replied, "but if you're from the bigger cities, you may not like it."

000

"The city does need to be cleaned."

"I agree, but some of the measures are drastic," he pointed out.

"Of course you would say that," she argued. "You're new in town and haven't had to be at the mercy of those youths."

"So rounding them up will solve the problem, I suppose?" he asked.

"It will remind them that actions have consequences," Elizabeth said. "And maybe I'll be able to get to _Millie's Cookies_ in peace."

000

"How can you prefer the Lantern to Batman?"

"You asked my option and I gave it," Darcy told her.

"Still, it just seems wrong," Elizabeth argued. "Those two can't even be compared. I mean he's The Batman and the other guy is just part of a Corps. It's ridiculous."

"That's what you think." Darcy was having so much fun, when Bingley had left his office earlier that evening, he hadn't imagined that about an hour later he would be stuck in a lift with the most interesting woman he had ever met.

"It's like comparing Miss Marple to Poirot," Elizabeth ranted. "It shouldn't and cannot be done."

000

The fire department and the police got them out of the lift and they separated: Darcy to get his car while Elizabeth ran to the nearest taxi. It was only as he drove off that he remembered that he hadn't even found out her name. Well at least she worked in the same building; he was bound to run into her some time.

000

Elizabeth opened the door to her office and was surprised to hear faint tapping coming through the inner door. She was usually one of the earliest people to arrive at work – certainly far earlier than Richard who first had his morning run – but it seemed things would be different with her new boss.

Darcy looked up as the door opened to see this paragon, Elizabeth Bennet, whom Richard had said responded to gentle handling.

It was the girl from the lift, the one he had liked and hoped that he would run into at work sometime and she was glaring at him.

At first, when Elizabeth had recognized him as the man from the lift she had smiled, and then she remembered his words.

"Elizabeth Bennet, your PA," she told him icily. "As you can see, I don't have a lazy eye and I can say boo to a sheep and have done it a number of times, and I don't require any gentle handling at all. Is there anything you require this morning?"

As he watched her storm out, he wished that he had kept his mouth shut. It was going to be hard work to get Elizabeth to like him, because he really liked her. At least she hadn't quit and he doubted that she would. That would give him time.

000

Thanks for reading.


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for reading and reviewing.

Thanks Miriam1 for all your help.

000

The party was in full swing; people were chatting, drinking and dancing, and generally having a lot of fun. Elizabeth made her way through the crowd and joined her coworkers. She would spend a few minutes at the party – show her face – and then go home. She was tired; it had been a very long week, but at least she had something to look forward to, Mr. Darcy was going to be out of office for the next two weeks. Not that he was a bad boss, on the contrary, but she needed him out of her space for a while so that she could gather her thoughts and be sensible again. Also, she was tired of thwarting all Mr. Darcy's attempts at being friendly. Who knew that intentionally trying not like somebody could be that hard?

"Here," Joanne pushed a glass into Elizabeth's hand. "It will help you get into the party mood."

Elizabeth took the glass but she had no intention of drinking from it: first because she didn't think it was a good idea to drink on an empty stomach, but mostly because she knew Joanne; Joanne was the one who always had time to spike the drinks at the office parties and Elizabeth didn't want to embarrass herself by dancing topless on a table or some equally ridiculous thing.

000

Darcy stood in the back of the room and watched as the other employees enjoyed themselves. He wasn't much for parties, and in this case he knew that his presence would put a damper on the people's enjoyment, so he wasn't going to be too visible. He would just hang around for a little while and then go home. He had to leave the country early the next morning to spend time with his Aunt Cat. Even the mere thought of her was enough to make him get the beginnings of a headache; dealings with Catherine de Bourgh were never easy, but at least he was going with Georgie and Richard.

He'd noticed Elizabeth from the moment she'd entered the room and watched her talking and laughing with her co-workers. He wanted to go up and talk her, but their relationship was tentative at best. They worked well together, Richard had been right about her. She was a great worker, but ever since that first day, two months ago, when she'd walked into his office and introduced herself, she had never made another personal remark. It was almost as if the woman he'd met in the lift was a figment of his imagination. He had tried to joke with her about The Lantern and uncouth youth only be stopped by her hard stare. Darcy had never made a great first impression in his life, but it seemed this time it was even going to be much harder to appease the person he'd wronged.

I really should learn to keep my mouth shut, he told himself.

Bingley had laughed at him when he'd told him that 'amazing lift woman' was Elizabeth Bennet, his PA.

"I did tell you not to judge her before you had even met her," Bingley had said.

"I know," Darcy had told his friend, "how was I to know that she'd be listening at the door?"

"That's just an excuse and you know it," Bingley had countered.

"I was tired and irritable," Darcy said. "And you know that no one should be taken seriously when they're tired."

He had followed Bingley's advice and apologized; Elizabeth had accepted his apology but refused to have anything to do with him unless it was work related.

000

William Lucas walked through the room smiling and nodding at people: as the human resource manager in charge of personnel and welfare affairs, he took it as part of his job to organize the parties, be the emcee at the parties and generally ensure that everyone had a great time at the parties.

He was very pleased with the turn-up, even the big man himself Mr. Darcy had come for the party, something which Lucas took as a personal victory. He'd heard that Mr. Darcy never liked to mingle with the staff and hated parties at best, so having him here was a great triumph. Not being one to be easily satisfied, Lucas now wanted Darcy to really be part of the party, to take part in the dancing as well, which is why he was currently walking around the room trying to find a suitable partner for Mr. Darcy.

Joanne from Accounts was very friendly but probably not good enough for Mr. Darcy. Rita and Ivy were too flighty and they were scared of him, although Darcy probably didn't even know who they were. Mr. Lucas looked from group to group dismissing all the women, mostly because they were too much in awe of their boss and would probably faint if he even looked in their direction, until he spotted Elizabeth Bennet.

Elizabeth Bennet. Why of course. He should have thought of her earlier. She was really the perfect partner for their boss and she was such a great dancer as well. He made his way to Darcy who was standing in a corner by himself.

"Well, what do you think? I'm sure you've never attended a party quite like this before."

Darcy had been hoping that Lucas hadn't seen him but now he no choice but to reply, "It's a great party."

"Yes it is," Lucas agreed. "But why aren't you dancing? Isn't the music to your taste? I could have the band play something for you."

"No thanks," Darcy replied quickly. The last thing he needed was to be forced to dance and make small talk.

"Dancing is something, isn't it?" Lucas asked. "The mark of a truly refined society."

"Not really," Darcy remarked. "Every savage can dance," and wished he hadn't spoken when he saw the look that Lucas was giving him.

"Ah…yes, well, quite," Lucas was wondering what was wrong with the boss. He thought dancing was …savagery? "But you should still dance."

"I don't like dancing." Darcy was having a hard time keeping his voice civil.

Lucas was about to walk away when he saw Elizabeth about to pass by, despite Darcy's protestations he was sure that if Darcy was presented with a suitable partner all his refusals would die down.

"Lizzie, my dear," Lucas called to her as she walked by.

"Uncle Will, Mr. Lucas… William, hi," Elizabeth smiled at him, she still felt awkward about calling her best friend's father by his first name, which he insisted on at work. "Great party." She ignored Mr. Darcy who was standing right there next to him.

"Yes, it's great, isn't?" Lucas answered. "But it would even be better if you were dancing. Mr. Darcy here was just assuring me how much he dislikes the activity but maybe you can help me persuade him otherwise." He turned to Darcy and added in a loud whisper, "Lizzie is a great dancer, and she will change your mind about the activity."

"Uncle Will," Elizabeth protested. "You just said that he told you he doesn't like to dance and I'm in no mood for dancing tonight."

"Nonsense," Lucas said. "How can you not want to dance?"

Darcy had been wishing that they both leave him be, but now he was glad, if things went his way he'd actually have a chance to spend some time with Elizabeth. He could actually get to dance with her. He saw her glaring at Lucas…Uncle Will; he wondered a bit about that, he was sure they weren't related.

He turned to Elizabeth and said, "Yes, Miss Bennet. How can we pass up this chance?" If the expression on her face was anything to go by, she wanted to blow him into smithereens but she forced a smile at Lucas, muttered something and let herself be led to the dance floor.

"Capital, capital," Lucas said, all but clapping his hands as he pushed them towards the dance floor.

Elizabeth wanted to box his ears but Uncle Will seemed so pleased with the arrangement, and she knew that if she refused to dance or even gave any more excuses, she would make it seem like a bigger deal than it really was. And to top it off, Mr. Darcy was smiling: she knew it was ridiculous but she insisted on calling him that, that she let herself be led to the dance floor.

000

"What happened at the party?"

Darcy looked at his sister Georgie who was staring at him. "Nothing." He told her. "You know the usual office party spiel."

"I don't believe you," she told him.

"What do you mean?"

"Usually when you are forced to attend office parties you come home in a huff," she replied. "Today you're smiling and happy, and you came home just a few minutes ago; I thought you would return after only half an hour like you usually do."

"Maybe I wasn't at the party," he said. "Maybe I was out somewhere else having fun."

Georgie laughed and told him, "You weren't at your office, with me, or with Charlie."

He hated being so predictable. "Okay, I was at the party," he conceded.

"And?"

"I danced with Elizabeth Bennet."

000

"I still don't see why you're upset."

Elizabeth glared at her sister who was trying, unsuccessfully, to hold back laughter. "Admit it, Lizzie; it was a ridiculous promise to make."

"It wasn't."

"Promising yourself that you would never dance with him," Jane scoffed. "That was over the top, even for you."

"I like dancing," Elizabeth reminded her. "Since I don't like Mr. Darcy, it seemed like a fair promise to make."

Jane shook her head. "I don't know why you insist on calling him Mr. Darcy, you never called Richard Mr. Fitzwilliam, and besides you like Mr. Darcy."

"I can't like a man who said I have a lazy eye and can't say boo to a sheep." Or she shouldn't, Elizabeth told herself. The man had insulted her; she had no business liking him at all.

"Okay, he said some harsh and uncalled-for words, but you liked him in the lift," Jane reminded her. "And he did apologise, very nicely."

"Lift-guy is not Mr. Darcy," Elizabeth said. Of course Jane couldn't understand. It was a matter of principle; Elizabeth wasn't supposed to have danced with Mr. Darcy and she shouldn't have enjoyed it at all. "I can't believe I danced with him." She repeated to herself.

000


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for reading and reviewing.

Thanks Miriam1 for all your help.

000

Elizabeth was unhappy. It was ridiculous, she knew, and she really had no right to be unhappy. Her life was perfect. Work was great as always and she enjoyed it.

She didn't want to admit it, even to herself, but the truth was that she missed Mr. Darcy. He had only been gone a week but it seemed so much longer. Somehow, the office seemed empty without him, and even work wasn't as enjoyable. Of course, with him being absent, her workload was considerably lighter, which was something she would normally have enjoyed but not now. Now it only made her feel his absence even more.

Get a grip, Lizzie; she told herself, he's just your boss.

000

Darcy sat down to dinner wishing that his aunt would just stop talking. It seemed to him that she had been talking nonstop for two hours, ever since the Morgans had called round for tea. Although Darcy had to admit that some of her anecdotes were funny and appropriate, now he wished for silence.

They had been in Manhattan a week and at first it had been great. It had all been work-related. When Darcy had taken over the Birmingham office, Richard had been posted to the London one. The group was now expanding to New York and the Manhattan office was due to open in a few months. Darcy and Richard and Georgie had been summoned by their aunt for their annual visit and also to work out some last minute details. Darcy and Richard had spent the first three days practically sleeping at the office, sorting out so many different details. Darcy was happy and he'd barely even seen or spent time with Aunt Cat, but now the business part of their visit was over and it was time to socialise.

First up on the list of families with eligible sons, for Georgie and daughters; for him and Richard were the Morgans. The Morgans were nice people and the families had known each other for years.

"Of course you remember my nephews, Richard and Fitzwilliam," Aunt Cat had told the Morgans. "And my niece Georgiana. You'll of course remember the awful skiing accident that killed my sister Anne and her husband George. They are very dutiful children, always checking in on their aunt."

"…Georgiana or Georgie, as she prefers to be called, is at the university now reading Law..."

"…Darcy is heading the Birmingham office now; of course he was quite reluctant to move to a smaller city, and to be away from Anne. They're betrothed, you know, but it's better for him and he's nearer Georgie, and of course that office needed all the help that it could get..."

"…Richard was trying, he's a great guy, but of course he doesn't quite know the business like Darcy does, still he's doing well in London..."

"Where are Marjorie and Daniel?" Marjorie and Daniel were the Morgan children. "They should have come; you know, to even up things for Richard and Georgie. Is Marjorie still with that magazine? I love reading her articles. I like to tell myself that I would have been a great journalist and an even better fashion editor. You know Mrs. Kennedy, the one who owns that little boutique down the street; she always says that I have the best fashion sense of anyone she's ever met. And my dear Anne is just like that, in fact she hadn't decided to become a preschool teacher; she would have made her mark on the world."

Catherine de Bourgh had never forgiven her daughter for not being beautiful and fashionable. Anne loved children and had decided to become a teacher, something which Catherine de Bourgh felt was beneath her, and to add insult to injury Anne had also informed her mother that she had no intention of marrying Darcy. "We're related, mother, first cousins once removed, whatever that means. And besides, I'm not interested in him like that," she had said.

Catherine de Bourgh hadn't spoken to her a daughter for a week after that, but she had no intention of giving up her dream of seeing her daughter and Darcy married.

Finally the seven-course meal came to an end, but not before they had heard all about Catherine de Bourgh's kindnesses to all her neighbours and everyone that crossed her path. She knew the best creams to use, where to shop, which clubs to be a part of, and - of course - what to do, whenever.

000

"I hope you left the office in good hands," Catherine de Bourgh asked Darcy at breakfast the next day.

"We have a great team at the Birmingham office," Darcy replied. "You know that."

"And that girl, Elizabeth Bennet, Richard's PA, is she still there?"

"Yes."

"So you retained her," Catherine de Bourgh nodded and turned to Richard. "You used to swear by her, didn't you? Apparently she can do no wrong. I'm glad to see that you were telling the truth."

Richard and Darcy exchanged looks, both wondering where their Aunt was going with that line of conversation, but apparently she was satisfied, because she dropped it and told them of her plans for them that day.

000

"Catherine de Bourgh is on Line 1 for you."

As Elizabeth punched the number, she wondered why the formidable Catherine de Bourgh was calling her. Everyone knew she was one of the managing partners, Richard and Mr. Darcy's aunt, and a very influential woman in business. Elizabeth had worked in the company for years and had never met or even spoken to the woman.

"Please hold for Catherine de Bourgh."

000

"And you have to go now?"

Elizabeth stopped throwing things into her suitcase and looked at her sister. "She wanted me to leave as soon as I got off the phone with her, but I pointed out to her that there were some things I needed to finish first."

"What exactly did she say?"

"Apparently I'm needed in Manhattan as soon as possible."

"Don't take this the wrong way," Jane said. "But you're just a PA, why do they need you at some new offices they're about to open?"

"Believe me I tried to ask," Elizabeth said. "But she pointed out that I have been PA to both Richard and Mr. Darcy, and that means that I have to meet her, or something like that. Actually, I didn't even understand half the things she was saying."

"Too shocked, huh?"

Elizabeth sat down. "Jane, Catherine de Bourgh, THE Catherine de Bourgh called me, and she seemed to know everything about me."

"Of course she did."

"I couldn't say no."

Jane laughed. "Of course, you couldn't. And knowing you, you probably want to meet her face-to-face to find out if everything you've heard about her is true."

"And I get to go to New York."

000

"Mrs. de Bourgh will be expecting you to dine with her this evening," Collins, Catherine de Bourgh's assistant, told Elizabeth as she was checked into the hotel. "I will pick you up 6.30pm. Dinner is 7.00 but you should be at least fifteen minutes early."

Elizabeth smiled and nodded at the man. "It is such a great honour for Mrs. de Bourgh to invite you for dinner like this on your first evening. Normally she meets people in the afternoon, you know, just in case she needs to get away early."

Elizabeth smiled at Collins, hoping he would take the hint and let her enjoy her room with the beautiful views of the water and the skyline. "And remember, you don't need to worry about what to wear for dinner tonight, Mrs. de Bourgh likes the distinction of rank to be preserved."

000

Catherine de Bourgh's house was everything Elizabeth had expected and more. It was a beautiful house set in beautifully manicured grounds. She was barely through the hallway when she heard a voice call out, "Let her to me directly."

Elizabeth entered the grand sitting room and stopped short. There in the room with Mrs. Catherine de Bourgh, a tall, handsome and very well-dressed woman, was Richard and Mr. Darcy, as well as two young women. She had known the Mr. Darcy was away on business, but somehow she hadn't expected to find him at his Aunt's house. Which was, of course, ridiculous, now that she thought about it.

"Miss Bennet," Mrs. de Bourgh said to her, "how nice of you to join us."

"I was honoured to receive the invitation." Elizabeth hoped she didn't sound like a prig.

"My nephews Richard and Fitzwilliam you already know," Mrs. de Bourgh said, "but this is my daughter Anne, and my niece Georgiana."

The five of them exchanged greetings and Elizabeth was invited to sit down near Mrs. de Bourgh.

"So Miss Bennet," Mrs. de Bourgh began, "I understand that you are one of five daughters, aren't you?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"My nephews tell me that you are very good at what you do," Mrs. de Bourgh continued.

"I try."

"Well, it is good for the company and all, but that is all you ever aspired to be? A PA?"

"I like my work." Elizabeth wasn't going to tell her why she was a PA. It wasn't any of her business.

"I mean, with the opportunities available to women nowadays, you could have been anything," Mrs. de Bourgh added. "It is my understanding that all your sisters are unmarried, and three of them are still living at home. And in addition to that that all of you are employed by other people."

"Yes."

"At your age, I had already started this company from scratch and was expanding it, on top of being a wife and mother."

"I'm sure Elizabeth has a great many interests that we know nothing about," Darcy interrupted his aunt. "And I, for one, am very grateful that she chooses to work with us and does not go into business on her own."

"I quite agree," Georgie said. "Besides, Aunt, you can't seriously believe that everyone should have a business of their own, can you?"

"That's beside the point," Mrs. de Bourgh said. "There are five daughters. One should amount to something: a doctor, a barrister, a member of parliament, something."

"I believe that depends on what 'amounting to something' means to one," Elizabeth said. "Our father educated us and let each of us know that we could do what we really wanted. I think parents should let children make their own choices."

Mrs. de Bourgh glared at Elizabeth. "You certainly have a very set opinion about things, don't you?"

Elizabeth smiled politely, at least she hoped it was polite, at her host and decided to hold her tongue. She hadn't traveled all the way to New York to be fired from her job.

000

"I don't know Jane; I think she's going to have me fired."

Elizabeth had called her sister as soon as she got back to the hotel. "She definitely wasn't happy with me."

"But you're not her PA; she doesn't have to work with you."

"She likes to be in charge," Elizabeth told her, "and I hate to admit this but she's the scariest person I ever met and… maybe she's right."

"So you basically think we're losers now?"

"Of course not."

"Aside from those pearls of wisdom," Jane said. "Any other interesting things about Mrs. de Bourgh de Bourgh?"

"She's the best dressed person I have ever seen, and she has this air about her, like she's a force of nature, and if you're not careful or strong enough, you'll be carried away by it."

Elizabeth told Jane about Richard, Georgiana, Mr. Darcy and Anne de Bourgh, and even sent her pictures of the house and grounds.

000

"Please don't think that you have to entertain me," Elizabeth told Georgie when she received a call from her early the next morning.

"Of course not." Georgie assured her. "I know it sounds a bit strange, but I do feel like we could be very great friends."

"Really?"

"My brother says the nicest things about you."

"Really? What exactly does he say?"

"That you're a great dancer and that you are funny," Georgie began. "He also told me about the lazy eye incident. He was mortified that you'd heard him say that."

"Then why did he say it?"

"I asked him the same thing," Georgie replied, "but he couldn't even give a sensible answer."

Elizabeth and Georgie both laughed and a few minutes later, Elizabeth found herself agreeing to spend the day with Georgie.

000

In the end, Elizabeth spent the day with Georgie, Mr. Darcy and Richard; at first she had been quite apprehensive when she discovered that Richard and Mr. Darcy had insisted on joining them, but after a while she was having too much fun to worry about it.

"Karaoke, no way," Darcy said.

"Don't tell me you're scared," Elizabeth told him.

"That won't work on me," Darcy said. "And I'm not scared of embarrassing myself trying to sing."

"Prove it," Elizabeth said. They had had a picnic earlier, when Anne de Bourgh joined their party. They enjoyed the ferry around the Statue of Liberty. Now Georgie and Richard wanted to go to a karaoke bar.

Darcy was about to refuse, to say no absolutely not, when he had an idea. "Okay, I'll go willingly to the karaoke bar and sing whatever song you want if you call me by my name."

"That's ridiculous," Elizabeth said promptly.

"That's my deal, take it or leave it."

"Fitz, that's rid -" Georgie began but Richard stopped her.

"Let them sort it out themselves," he whispered to her.

"Fine, Fitzwilliam," Elizabeth told him. "We're singing _Making Love Out Of Nothing At All_ first."

That evening, as Elizabeth prepared for bed, she thought to herself that she couldn't remember a day she'd enjoyed more; she couldn't wait for tomorrow, as they had made plans for the next two days.

000

"I don't like Elizabeth Bennet."

"Of course you don't," Grace Linden-Kent, Mrs. de Bourgh's friend replied. "She didn't cower in your presence."

Mrs. de Bourgh smiled at her friend. "I know, I'm always saying how much I hate those idiots who fawn over my every word, how I like women to stand up for what they believe in. But somehow I cannot stand the sight of that young woman."

"She's leaving in a few days"

"Leaving New York maybe, but she'll still be in my life so to speak."

"She works with Fitzwilliam; you don't have to even hear about her." Grace reminded her.

"Why do you think I summoned her here in the first place?" Mrs. de Bourgh asked. "My nephews are always going on about how good she is at her job; I needed to see her for myself."

"And?"

"Now I really need to get rid of her."

"Why?"

Mrs. de Bourgh didn't answer her friend, but then Grace wouldn't understand - no one could. She needed to get Fitzwilliam as far away from Elizabeth Bennet as she could, otherwise Anne really didn't stand a chance. She had seen the way her nephew stared at Elizabeth, how Georgie had warmed up to her, and even Anne had liked her. No, she needed to get Elizabeth out of the way. Whether Fitzwilliam or Anne liked it or not, they were going to get married to each other, and no one, especially, not a nobody like Elizabeth Bennet, for all her fine PA skills, was going to get in their way.

000


End file.
